tinted love

With summer in full swing, most of you trade in your heavier foundations for a sheer alternative. This is where a good tinted moisturizer comes along. What I look for in a tinted moisturizer is a small but important list of three requirements.

SPF. It must be at least a fifteen so my skin is protected. I do tend to add a facial sunscreen underneath my moisturizer anyways, but if I'm on the go or at the cottage, fewer steps are better.

Coverage. I know for the most part these are sheer coverage products, but if I have a bit of redness in my complexion, I want my tinted moisturizer to be buildable as to cover and even that out. Nevertheless, if I get the odd breakout, I won't hesitate to add a bit of my favourite concealer to spot treat those stubborn complexion woes.

Texture. Depending on a persons skin type, this preference will vary. Most of the tinted moisturizers I love are oil-free to avoid that heavy feeling on the skin (which is awful on a sticky, humid Canadian summer day). I tend to recommend to my clients to go for a lightweight texture so that it's hydrating enough in the summer, and easily layered over a moisturizer in the winter months where one might need a little 'something extra'.

This is my ideal choice of a daily makeup base. I will admit that I have been blessed with a very good complexion, and so the coverage of a sheerer product is fine with me. For those ladies who are on a beauty budget and can't buy a variety of products for seasonal use, another trick is to take your favourite foundation and dilute it with an appropriate moisturizer. Also with that trick, you gals who may need a slightly fuller coverage can play around with foundation vs. moisturizer ratio to get that perfect finish by simply adding more foundation to the mixture.

My tip for a nice, even application (not just with a tinted moisturizer, but with ANY foundation) is to start in the centre of the face, being the forehead, nose, inner cheeks and chin. Adding the foundation there first with your fingers, sponge or brush, you can then blend the product out towards the perimeter of the face so you avoid the chance of the dreaded line of demarcation. Most of us need most of the coverage in these concentrated areas so this allows for a nice application that is perfectly blended every time.